Sunshine Cleaning

I hadn't heard about this movie before I saw it last night on Netflix Watch Instantly.  Starring Amy Adams and Emily Blunt, it didn't get great reviews from critics--A.O. Scott of the NYTimes, especially, panned it, though I usually agree with his assessments.  It's a dramedy about injured pride, career disappointment, cleaning up after violent crimes, and why suicides are really missing the point of life.  Although Norah's side story (Norah is played by Blunt) with Mary Lynn Rajskub's character gives a through-the-looking-glass sort of view on those subjects. 

But I found it rich and moving.  Maybe it just resonated with a particular mood I'm in these days, but it made me a little happier to be alive.

Magenta Soup

This soup has such a wild color...you have to love it just for that.  Plus, it tastes great.  It's a little spicy, and, served with a dollop of plain yogurt, a little creamy.

I roasted the veggies one night for dinner (I made more than it reads in the recipe), then finished making the soup the next day.  I ate it for lunch 4 days in a row.

Magenta Soup
serves 4
3 tablespoons light olive oil, divided (it's refined enough so that it is stable at high temps, unlike extra virgin)
1 russet potato, peeled and chopped
1 beet, peeled and chopped
1 half of an acorn squash, peeled and chopped (which is hard to do, of course, though not impossible.  You might try roast larger pieces with the skin on and chopping later)
1 small onion, chopped
6 garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1 tablespoon dried thyme
salt and pepper (you might want to salt at the very end if you're using a salty, canned broth)
8 cups chicken broth


Preheat the oven to 400 F.  Drizzle half of the oil in a jelly roll pan or something large enough for the veggies to lay in a single layer.  Add the veggies and spices and the rest of the oil and mix to evenly distribute.  Roast for about 40 minutes, until veggies are soft and turn a little golden.

Transfer the veggies to a soup pot with the chicken broth.  Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.  Puree with an immersion blender until smooth.

Strata for the New Year Part I

Here's 2010.  It still sounds futuristic....and yet we're a decade into it.  And here I am, finally joining the 21st century with a blog of my own.  It will be about eating well, living lightly, and my dog Parsley....!

So I made strata.  This version is rich with egg and cheese, warm with nutmeg, and crunchy with a thin brown crust all around.  Obviously, it's great for a special brunch.  But according to Recipezaar, one serving has almost 24 grams of fat.  How could it be healthier so it could be eaten a few days for a quick breakfast?  I think it could use about twice as many veggies and half as much bread to make up for all those eggs and all that cheese.  The bread also keeps the cost down--it takes up a lot of room for the price.  So the additions need to be economical.  The Gruyere cost me about $5, plus it is a little fatty.  So the cheese could use a change, as well.  If you have any ideas, leave them in the comments.  I'll be trying a healthier version soon!

Spinach Mushroom Strata

serves 4 (or double it and use a 3 quart casserole)

5 oz frozen spinach, thawed

1 cup finely chopped onion (1 medium)

5 oz mushrooms, chopped

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 teaspoon salt (divided)

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

4 cups whole wheat bread, cubed (1 inch)

3 oz coarsely grated Gruyère (1 cup)

1 oz finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (1/2 cup)

1 1/2 cups milk

4 large eggs

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

(the wine is for the cook!)

Squeeze the liquid from spinach and set aside. Heat butter over medium heat and cook onion and mushrooms until soft.

Add 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and the pepper and nutmeg and cook for one minute. Add spinach, stir, and remove from heat.

In a lightly buttered 1 1/2 to 2 quart casserole, spread one third of the bread cubes across the bottom, then 1/3 of the spinach mixture, then 1/3 of the Gruyere, and 1/3 of the Parmesan.

Continue layering ingredients, finishing with a cheese layer. Whisk together the milk, eggs, and mustard. Pour evenly over casserole.

 

Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes, until golden brown and puffy in the middle. Casserole can be refrigerated overnight before cooking.